One educator, determined to create an engaging and dynamic experience for learners of all ages.

Category Archives: iPad Ed

Looking to provide more choice in how students demonstrate their understanding? Check out these Multiple Intelligence choice boards that provide you and your students with creative ways to show what they know! These choice boards were developed for K-8 teachers and were a part of a professional development on creativity. If you open the slides, you’ll find that grade levels for each board (or really, wheel!) are mentioned in the presenter notes section.

This year, we are transitioning from a pilot year of 300 student devices to our inaugural year of full implementation with about 900 student devices. With feedback from teachers stating that they were ready to go and wanted to be able to use the device asap with students, we decided to attempt an iPad distribution day before the school year started. So, we started to put plans into place!

Some things you should know about our distribution are that we had summer employees tag, scan, and assign iPads to students. They also had the fun job of removing them from their boxes, labeling the iPad for the student, and placing the iPad in our new cases. We are using Apple’s new Mobile Device Management program this year and parents were asked throughout the summer to create an Educational Apple ID for their student(s) under 13 years old. We pair Apple’s MDM with Cisco’s Meraki MDM. Now that we have all of the technical specs out of the way, let’s take a look at the actual event details.

We scheduled one day, a week before school started, from 1pm-7pm for students to pick up their devices. Students had to have their iPad Handbook signed and hopefully had created an Apple ID before coming to the event. We decided to not split them into certain time frames by alphabetical order or ask them to schedule a time for pick up since we were doing distribution for just one day. We had 26 teachers in our building volunteer to help (our teachers rock!), in addition to about six student Tech Squad members. The helpers were arranged in shifts from 1pm-4pm and 4pm-7pm for the most part. Let me tell you, I can’t imagine doing this with any less number of helpers!

We set up the event in stations so that the tasks were separated. At each of the six stations we had a poster with the steps of the station so that individuals could start the station steps on their own while they waited in line. We also had handouts on each table with the same steps. We tried to have at least 2 helpers at each station. For some of the more challenging stations, we had three helpers.

Station 1: We initially separated individuals as they entered into two lines: 1. Have an Edu Apple ID, 2. Don’t have an Edu Apple ID yet. Then, when they had taken care of business at Station 1 with either just signing in or creating an Apple ID, they received a ticket so that they could proceed to Station 2 and pick up their iPad.

Station 2: The red ticket was used so that Station 2 knew that the student had checked in and had turned in their signed iPad Handbook. This worked really well. Students told the helper their last name and as the helper searched for the iPad, the student found their name on a sheet of labels. Students then immediately labeled their chargers. After getting their iPad, they proceeded to Station 3.

Station 3: Students went through the startup configuration of the iPad, until they got to the “Get Started” message and home screen.

Station 4: Students renamed their iPads so that we could manage them by building and grade level. They also turned on items in the app store so that they could receive apps.

Station 5: Students set up their student email and found their Meraki email so that their device could receive apps.

Station 6: Students checked to make sure they had the Meraki profile on their device and then completed an expectation checklist so that they were aware of the big iPad rules before leaving the building.

Issues

Successes

Lessons Learned

Network flooded when trying to create Apple IDs and wouldn’t allow us to access site for ID creation. It seemed to be a two-part issue (our side & Apple’s side) because parents couldn’t access the site from their phones which were not on our WiFi.

“Missing iPads”- Since devices were labeled, etc. at another building, we were actually missing a few boxes that we were not aware of until the event started. We also did not plan on new students (like registered a few days prior) arriving to pick up devices. So, we had some students who came and their devices weren’t even in our boxes of missing iPads that arrived.

Dead iPads

Stations and the number of helpers running each station.

Clear directions posted large and having handouts on table.

We pulled people when the line got too long and we created stations in the lobby near our gym so that they did not have to wait in line forever. This kept people happy.

Multiple WiFi access points.

Having power strips on hand.

Having printed copies of student usernames and passwords on hand at the first station and email station.

Possibly label the iPads then and there, which will cut down on time it took to try to locate the iPad and would also solve issues of devices not being able to be located.

You can never have enough WiFi access points!

Having parents come in over the summer to create their Apple IDs if they need assistance.

Overall, we had more success than issues and after the first two hours of a non-stop line of people, we were easily able to get people in and out in under 20 minutes. The biggest hang up which caused for some people to be there longer was due to our issues accessing Apple’s website through parent email. When parents were clicking the “Consent” button, the webpage was redirecting them to the wrong page and was not allowing them to create an actual Educational Apple ID for their student. We ended up just forming a line where we took the parent’s information so that we could help them create an Apple ID at a later time. Being flexible and creating a plan on the go really helped! We had about 700/853 students come through to pick up their devices that evening and it was truly an awesome showing of our learning community with the number of staff, students, and parents involved!

Remix, Repurpose, and Redesign: Promoting Student Ownership and Engagement: My colleagues and I presented on strategies for remixing content and repurposing technologies, which allows educators to redesign their pedagogical strategies. Through low-tech and high-tech repurposing, students can engage in deep play, allowing them to get lost in the content…in a good way! These strategies include redesigns of every day classroom routines, like Bell Ringers, classroom rules, Exit Slips, etc. Click the image below to be taken to session resources.

iPadeology: Staff and Student Resources for iPad Deployment: My colleague and I presented on the key characteristics of the mindset that we developed to guide decision making during our first year in our district’s 1:1 pilot. We share the steps we believe made us successful, how we managed to keep the focus on instruction and not the device, student development resources, staff development resources, and parental resources for deployment. Click the image below to be taken to session resources.

As our district piloted a 1:1 resource allocation for k-5 over the past three years, this year provided the opportunity for the middle schools to officially enter the pilot! Excited, anxious, curious, and strategizing are all words that could have summed up the summer of collaboration between myself and the other middle school Technology Facilitator in our district. How could we best prepare our students and teachers for the fall rollout of the devices? With lots of discussion, a shared Evernote notebook of resources and ideas, and a shared planning Google Site, it was decided that we would put together some sort of lesson start up for our teachers to guide the students through the first few weeks of school. So…the real planning got started!

Every student (Grade 6 in my building, Grade 7 in the other middle school) would have an iPad to utilize as a learning resource. Once a contract was signed, students would take the device home with them every night. This is the first year that the middle school has been in the pilot and none of our teachers or students coming into the pilot have had an iPad experience previously. We are starting at the foundation. Staff had optional professional development that they could be a part of during the summer (See my iPad 201 post) and we created two iTunes University courses for staff to utilize for summer preparation as well.

Content:

Teachers: 21st century teaching/learning skills

Students: 21st century learning skills

Guiding Questions: What skills/ideas are essential for students and teachers to be successful and smart users of the iPad?

We had a lot to cover! From executive functioning, to digital citizenship, to Internet safety and everything in between! We started with the basics of increasing the technical skills of the user through personalizing the device (organizing folders, tips and tricks of using the iPad, creating photo albums for each content area, etc.). Then, we “leveled up” to integrating learning how to use key apps by addressing content that teachers have to address at the beginning of every school year (like dress code). We moved on to discussing Internet safety and Creative Commons. It was key to us to create an awareness of proper use of the device and proper use in sharing, as we knew students would be creating and sharing at a much higher level with their devices.

Pedagogy:

Guiding Question: How can we model meaningful 21st century learning for students and teachers?

We knew we needed to use this as an opportunity to not only increase the digital literacy of our students, but of our teachers as well. This challenge called for lots of modeling! From citing sources throughout our lessons as a way to reinforce digital citizenship, to providing a clear instructional sequence to model online learning strategies, we kept an eye on details as we created the sequence of instruction. My work with Michigan State’s Certificate in Educational Technology helped to solidify a sound and concrete structure for delivering content. When teaching a course in Winter 2013, I fell in love with the instructional sequence: Explore, Learn, Create, Share (Master of Arts in Educational Technology Program, Michigan State University). After dialoguing with my colleague and discussing observations she had from a visit to Aptakisic Junior High, we also wanted to create a structure to increase engagement and differentiation. Through the inclusion of elements of gamification, we were able to create a structure to allow students to “level up” or move on if they already had an understanding. We wanted to be incredibly hands-on and interactive, as we knew that the only way to really increase digital literacy was for our students to interact with the device and the content. With all of these ideas spinning around, we decided on a mix of structures that we had experienced, which took shape in the following instructional sequence of every learning opportunity:

iDiscover: Content, as outlined by the learning target for the level

iExplore: Learning about the content or tool in a more exploratory, hands-on way

iCreate: Creating an artifact that demonstrates understanding of the content, using a technological tool

iOrganize: Organizing ideas or the device itself in some way to create personalization (ie., setting up folders, photo albums, etc.). Let’s remember, we’re working with middle schoolers. We know how messy their lockers can get!

iReflect: Provide an opportunity for students to make connections to content and extend their understanding

iShare: Provide students the opportunity to share their understanding of the content

All of these pedagogical strategies allowed us to create a focus on individual exploration. We were aware that technology had been taught through demonstrations in classrooms and we knew that, while this can be effective, it would not be plausible when allowing for student choice in demonstration of learning as the year got rolling. In addition, we opened up every challenge to exploration and encouraged the participants to explore, play, and problem solve on their own.

Technology:

Guiding Questions: How can we model purposeful technology integration and use this as a learning opportunity for teachers? How can we make the content more accessible to students through utilizing the device?

To make the content more accessible and place emphasis on the exploration and differentiation elements, we decided to utilize a Google Site to house our program, which we deemed “iSucceed”. Affordances of using Google Sites over using our selected learning management system:

Students would not have to create an account to get to the information. So, we could start Day 1!

Familiarity with the technology. We would not distract from the content which we had identified as important by having hang ups in dealing with issues of understanding how to navigate content in the selected learning management system.

Provided a shell that allowed the content to flow in an easy-to-follow sequence.

Allowed for staff not in the pilot to have access to the content.

Allows for fluid differentiate for all levels of users by embedding video tutorials and written directions so that content is represented in multiple ways.

The resource allocation roll out at the middle school certainly set the tone for utilizing the device in purposeful ways. Since we took content which needed to be covered−like the dress code—and showed how students could access content, clarify their understanding, and demonstrate their new knowledge, it allowed for teachers and students to see how content could be made accessible in new ways. We have teams at our respected buildings and district level that are still reflecting fully on how we will better prepare for the full roll out next year. I’ll certainly keep you updated!

As we first began our jump into 1:1 with our 6th graders in our building this year, we wanted to encourage play and exploration of the iPad as a resource. Of course, without setting up some structure for our middle schoolers, we found that some students were finding themselves off task when they had “free time”. We all have students who naturally move through the content at a faster pace and then we hear, “I’m done with my work.” How can we utilize the time that students spend playing and exploring during this time, in a way that continues to support and extend their learning? Our answer: anchor activities. Each of our teachers has these anchor activities posted in their classroom so that when students are done with their work, they know the expectations for how the remainder of their time in class should be spent.

Where do you even start when trying to determine what apps are appropriate for your students and your context? My colleague and I spent months researching strategies for app evaluation, discovering apps, and reviewing them last Spring. We were using TPACK and the SAMR Model to guide our thoughts. I’ve recently tried to compile our process for evaluation in this document. I’d appreciate any feedback you have! We knew we wanted to be able to provide transformative learning experiences and a lens for seeing the iPad as a set of resources to support learning across conent areas. It wasn’t until we stumbled across EdTech Teacher’s post, that we had clarity for sharing our vision. Here’s the foundation for how we see our student iPads:

iPad as a Global Sharing Tool: Portfolios created with Google Sites on the iPad, Kidblog, Classroom Websites

Click here to see our full app list! *With this being our first year piloting at the middle school level, some apps may seem repetitive as we are trying to figure out which are most successful for our learners and their needs.